In response to the workforce shortage impacting British Columbia’s hospitality industry, the British Columbia Hotel Association (BCHA) has taken matters into its own hands. For the first time in the organization’s 105-year-old history, it has created an administrative position dedicated to recruitment.

Filling the role of “workforce specialist” is Alison Langford, who will be tasked with leading both domestic and international recruitment efforts for the accommodation sector, developing new hiring opportunities and strengthening existing initiatives with partner organizations.

Additionally, she will provide counsel for BCHA members navigating hiring resources and programs such as the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, the Francophone Mobility Program, and BC Provincial Nominee Program, among many others.

“British Columbia’s workforce shortage has reached a critical juncture and operators across the province have overwhelmingly agreed that access to skilled workers is among their most pressing concerns for 2022,” says Ingrid Jarrett, President and CEO of the BCHA.

“We knew it was imperative to have someone on our team with the background and expertise our industry can lean on to better support operators and deliver solutions to mitigate this crisis.”

A regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant and a licensed British Columbia Foreign Worker Recruiter, Langford’s experience in the field is extensive, having worked with employers in the hospitality and tourism industries across Western Canada for the past 12 years.

Langford will be one of the guest panellists during BCHA’s upcoming virtual event “Workforce Recovery Panel: Navigating Recruitment Resources and Programs,” taking place Feb. 16 at 1 p.m. PST. The online event will feature an expert panel of workforce and recruitment experts as they address hiring solutions available to business owners.